Polish energy sector’s dependence on lignite mining: the process of transition

• Autorzy: Widera Marek , Naworyta Wojciech , Urbański Paweł

Identyfikatory

DOI

10.46873/2300-3960.1432

• Języki publikacji: EN

Abstrakty

EN

This opinion study is devoted to the role of lignite in the Polish energy sector in recent decades, i.e., after the collapse of communism in 1989. Lignite is the primary source of electricity in Poland, second only to hard coal. More than 25-35% of Polish electricity was generated by lignite-fired power plants in 1990-2022. To meet the needs of the energy industry, 46-70 Mt of lignite was mined annually in that period. Hence, Poland was, and still is, one of the world leaders in lignite production. Despite the ongoing transition of the Polish energy sector, changes occur very slowly due to political, economic, environmental and social reasons. In the years 2021-2022, the downward trend in lignite mining, influenced mainly by the COVID-19 pandemic, was reversed by the war in Ukraine. Fortunately, there is now a great opportunity to accelerate the energy transition in Poland because of domestic political changes at the end of 2023. Nevertheless, complete independence from coal, including lignite, will not take place within the next 10-25 years, i.e., before nuclear power plants are built and the share of renewables in Poland’s energy mix increases by at least several times.

Słowa kluczowe

EN

energy industry; lignite production; energy transition; mining transition; Poland

PL

przemysł energetyczny; produkcja węgla brunatnego; transformacja energetyczna; transformacja górnictwa; Polska

• Wydawca: Elsevier ; Główny Instytut Górnictwa
• Czasopismo: Journal of Sustainable Mining
• Rocznik: 2024
• Tom: Vol. 23, iss. 4
• Strony: 397--406
• Opis fizyczny: Bibliogr. 61 poz.

Twórcy

autor

Widera Marek

• Institute of Geology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland

• https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5092-2845

autor

Naworyta Wojciech

• Mining Engineering & Occupational Safety, AGH University of Science and Technology, Kraków, Poland

• https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4569-3907

autor

Urbański Paweł

• Polish Geological Institute - National Research Institute, Warszawa, Poland

• https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5440-6562

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